Tuesday, July 17, 2007

(CBS4) MIAMI DADE The fate of a South Florida man who allegedly left a 5-year old girl to die on Alligator Alley will soon be in the hands of a Miami Dade jury.

Nine years ago, Harrel Braddy is accused of kidnapping the girl, Quatisha Maycock, and her mother from their North Miami Dade apartment. During the trial the girl's mother, Shandelle Maycock, said she had met Braddy through a friend at church. That night she said the two argued when she asked him to leave.

Maycock testified Braddy started choking her in the apartment, then forced both her and her daughter into his car. He allegedly then drove to a sugar cane field in Palm Beach County, where choked Maycock again until she passed out. He then allegedly left Maycock in the field and drove to Alligator Alley where he's accused of dumping child out of the car and leaving her to die. Our news partners at the Miami Herald report an Quatisha's autopsy revealed she was alive when she was attacked by alligators which ripped off an arm and bit into her head. Police found the girl's dead body two days later.

After the prosecution and Braddy's defense present their closing arguments on Tuesday, the jury will begin their deliberations. If they jury finds Braddy guilty, the prosecutor has said he will seek the death penalty.

The case has taken nine years to come to trial because Braddy has fired a series of lawyers and even tried to represent himself for several months before agreeing to let his current attorneys try the case.